Vending apparatus



Sept. 3, 1929.

J. H. CLARK 1,726,525

VENDING APPARATUS I Filed July 29, 1927 4 Sheets-Sheet l V v I 6 X .1 425 i G i 55 J?- l INVENTOR ATTORN EYE p 1929- v J. H. CLARK 1,726,525

I VENDING APPARATUS Filed July 29, 1927 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 ATTORNEYS) Sept. 1929. J. H. CLARK 1,726,525

VENDING APPARATUS Filed July 29, 1927 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 BY jlylENToR g; 2 i W ATTORNEYS,

Sept. 3, 1929. J. H, CLARK 1,726,525

VENDING APPARATUS Filed July 29, 1927 4 Sheets-Shget 4 ATTORNEYfi PATENT OFFICE.

JOSEPH H. CLARK, F NEVIAR-K, NEW JERSEY.

VENDING APPARATUS.

Application filed July 2 8, 1927.

This invention relates in general to cabinets or the like having a plurality of doors or the like normally locked and including check or coin or otherwise controlled means whereby said doors may be opened one and only one at a time. More particularly the in vention relates to a vending machine including a plurality of compartments each closed by a door, and locking means whereby all of said doors are normaly locked and upon deposit of single special check or coin any one and only one of said doors may be opened by a simple pull upon the knob of the door it is desired to open.

One object of the invention is to provide novel and improved apparatus of this character wherein the locking mechanism normally lock all of the doors and deposit ofthc proper coin or check in the slot releases the locking mechanism to unlock all of the doors so that any door may be opened, the opening of one door actuating the lock mechanism to lock all of the other doors and throwing the coin out of the operative relation to the lock mechanism.

Another object is to provide such apparatus wherein each door is directly controlled by a lock bar on d said lock bars are controlled by a plurality oi tumblers which are normally held against movement by a locking dog released by a check or coin so that upon deposit of a coin or check, the tumblers are released so as to permit D'IOKICHEGHJJ oi any one look bar by a pull. upon the respective door knob, opening of the door serving to move the tumblers so as to locl; all other doors.

Further obiccts are to provide in such vending apparatus a novel and improved construction and combination of lock bars, tumblers and lockin dogs whereby the doors are positively and securely locked and yet may be simply and quickly opened; to provide novel and improved means common to all of the doors a51- automatically closing them; to provide novel and improved means for holding each door open until the next coin or check is deposited, the deposit of the coin causing omatic closing of any open. doors; to proide in such apparatus key controlled means ro 'i chino all of the doors sinou compar larger-owe Serial No. 209,342.

actuated by a check or coin for controlling said locking dogs; to provide such apparatus which is reliable and durable in operation so as to withstand hard and long usage in all kinds of weather; and to obtain other results and advantages as may be brought out by the following description.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, in which corresponding and like parts are designated throughout the several views by the same reference characters,

Figure 1 is a front elevation of a vending apparatus embodying my invention, portions being broken away and shown in section to illustrate details of construction;

Figure 2 is a. transverse vertical sectional view, taken on the line 22 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a similar view, taken on the line 33 of Figure 1;

Figure 4 is a like view, taken on the line 4-4 of Figure 1;

Figure 5 is a fragmentary front elevation with a portion of the front wall of the casing broken away to show details of construction;

Figure 6 is a top plan View with portions broken away. on the line 6 6 of Figure 1;

Figure 7 is a horizontal sectional view, taken on the line 77 of Figure 1;

Figure 8 is an enlarged fragmentary partial section and partial side elevation of the portion of the coin controlled mechanism which receives the coin;

Figure 9 is a horizontal sectional view, taken on the line 99 of Figure 8;

Figure 10 is a fragmentary vertical longitudinal sectional view through the coin box,

Figure 11 is a transverse vertical sectional view, taken on the line 11 11 of Figure 10, and, Figure 12 is fragmentary perspective view showing the spring return means for the locking linger.

In the illustrated embodiment of the invention, the reference character A. designates the casing of the apparatus which is interiorly divided into a plurality of article-receiving compartments B, each of which includes a shelf or bottom 1 and a front normally closed by a suitable closure such as a door 2. In the present instance there are two vertical series C and D of compartments, and all of the doors of both s a e controlled by the at finish: ml 3,1,, me of said doors viii;

at a time in either series may be opened upon the deposit of a check or coin in a single slot.

As shown, each of the doors 2 in each series C is hinged at its lower edge upon a horizontal bar 3 so that the door may swing outwardly from the front of thecasing A about said bar as illustrated in Figures 2 and 3 of the drawings. The bars 3 are rotatable relativelyto the doors, and the doors may be formed of sheet metal and have their lower edges shaped into longitudinal sleeves 4: to loosely receive the bars as illustrated.

Each of these bars 3 serves as a lock bar for the next lower door, and each door has arcuate end flanges 5 concentric with the bar 3 upon which the door is hinged. The forward or front ends of said flanges are formed with shoulders 6 which normally bear against the flat bases of diametrical notches 7 formed in the lock bar 3 next above the respective door. The lock bars are shown as journale'd' to ro tate at one end in the side walls of the casing A and at the other end in vertical channels 8, one channel 8 being provided for each series C of doors, and said channels being spaced as shown in Figures 1 and'7 of the drawings with their open sides facing each other.

Each lock bar 3 has at its inner end or the end journaled in the channel 8, a diametric fin 9 formed with flat sides which are in planes at right angles to the planes of the bases of the notches 7 in the same bar 3. The fins 9 of all of the bars 3 are normally, when the doors are in closed position, disposed substantially horizontally, and the bases of the notches 7 are disposed vertically (see Figures 2 and 3), and therefore it will be obvious that if the bars 3 are held against rotation the doors 2 cannot be opened, but that if the bars 3 are free to rotate the doors may be opened by a simple pull thereon. Each door is formed with a knob 10 for this purpose.

The top door of each series C is controlled by a lock bar 11 identical in construction with the lock bars 3 above described, but the lock bars 11 do not serve as hinges for the reason that there is no door above them.

All of the bars 3 and 11 are normally held against'rotation by mechanism including two series of tumblers E and F, one for each of the series G and D of compartments. Each series of tumblers includes a plurality of tumblers 12 slidably mounted in the respective channels 8 and normally in endwise abutting engagement. In the present instance there is one tumbler 12 for each door 2, and the tumblers for all of the doors, except the top ones, are identical and are formed of flat rectangular pieces of metal having their lower ends notched as at 13 to take over the lock bar 3 of the next lower door, the bases of said notches being substantially flat so as to normally rest upon the upper surface of the fin 9 of the respective bar 3. The upper ends of the tumblers are substantially straight and flat as at 14c and are in abutting relation to the notched ends of the next adjacent tumblers above. The depth of each notch 13 is substantially equal to the distance between the upper fiat side of each fin 9 and the diametrically opposite point on the periphery of the bar. The lower end of the lowermost tumbler 12 is each series bears against a fixed block or the like 15 at the bottom of the casing A (see Figure The upper tumbler 16 of each series has a notch 17 at the lower end identical with the notches 13, and a like notch 18 at the upper end.

lVith this construction, it will be clear from Figures 2 and 3 that if the tumblers F are free for longitudinal sliding in the channels 8, that a pull upon the knob 10 of any door 2 will cause the respective lock bar 3 to be retated so as to swing the bases oi the notches 7 substantially horizontal and permit the flanges of the door to slide outwardly through said notches (see Figure 2). This rotation of the lock bar 3 swings the respective fin into vertical position which causes the ends of the fin to bear upon the top of the next lower tumbler and the base of the notch 13 in the next upper tumbler. The length of the lin being greater than the distance between the flat sides thereof and the periphery of the bar, all of the tumblers above the bar are slid upwardly (see Figure This action simultaneously holds all of the tumblers below the said lock bar against movement which would release the respective doors, and forces the upper ends of the upper tumblers into engagement with the undersides of the li 9 to prevent rotation of the corresponding bars which would release the respective doors. The upper lock bars 11 are held against rotation by engagement of the ba s of the notches 18 with the undersides of the fins on said bars.

To lock all of the doors against unauthorized opening and to ensure that only one door at one time is opened, I provide a locking dog for normally holding both series E and F of the tumblers against movement and for permitting such limited movement of said tumblers as will release one door of either series; and preferably this locking dog is controlled by a coin actuated mechanism so that upon the deposit of one coin or check one and only one door may be opened. The locking dog G includes two parts 15 and 20 which are pivotally mounted on a common horizontal pivot 21. These parts 19 and 20 cooperate with the respective series E and F of the tumblers and are constantly influenced toward the respective tumblers by a spring 22. The parts 19 and 20 have a relative movement about said pivot 21 which is sulhcient to permit said limited movement of the respective series of tumblers when the locking dog is released; and to hold said parts 19 and 20 against such relative movement so as to lock both series of tumblers against movement, one of the parts, in the present instance the part 19, is formed with a tail piece 23 which overlies the top of the part 20; when the parts 19 and 20 are in locked position, there is a space between the tail piece 23 and the part 20, and a locking finger 24 is disposed in said space to hold the parts against movement. It will be observed that the locking parts 19 and 20 bear upon the upper ends of the uppermost tumblers so as to be movable thereby, but the locking parts also bear upon the upper surfaces of the fins on the lock bars 11 when all the doors are closed so as to cooperate with the bases of the notches 18 to hold the said locking bars 11 against rotation.

This locking finger 24 is mounted upon the end of a vertical shaft 25 so as to be swung into and. out of the space between the parts 19 and 20 by oscillation of the said shaft. The shaft 25 extends downwardly through the casing A between the channels 8 and has its lower end returned upwardly as at 26 in juxtaposed relation to a coin chute 27 so as to be actuated by a coin falling through said chute. The chute 27 is arranged to receive a coin or check through a slot 28 in the front of the casing, and the chute preferably is formed with a-base portion 29, side flanges 30 and inturned flanges 31 which are spaced from each other (see Figure 9). The re turned portion 26 of the shaft 25 is disposed in the space between said int-urned flanges 31 and is normally held in engagement with the base 29 of the chute by a spring 32 connected at one end to the upper end of the shaft adjacent the locking finger 24 with its other end bearing against abutments such as screws 320. The surface of the returned portion 26 adjacent the base of the chute is cut away at 33 to form a shoulder 34, the cut away portion 33 being spaced from the base of the chute a substantially smaller distance than the thickness of the coin or check H which falls through the chute. As above indicated, the locking finger 24 is normally held by the spring 32 between the locking parts 19 and 20 of the locking dog G, and when a coin His deposited in the slot 28 it falls by gravity through the chute forcing the returned portion 26 of the shaft 25 away from the base of the chute and stopping at said shoulder 34, such action rotating the shaft 25 to throw the locking finger 24 from between the parts 19 and 20 of the locking dog. This releases the locking dog, and a pull upon the knob of any one of the doors 2 will result in the door opening, which action through the rotation of the respective lock bar 3 simultaneously moves the respective series of tumblers and the locking parts 19 and 20 through the limited range of movement provided by the space between the parts 19 and 20, whereby all of the remaining doors are held closed (see Figure 1 For causing displacement of the coin 1 from the shoulder 34 so as to permit the locking finger 24 to return to its normal position, the extremity of the tail piece 23 and the top of the part 20 are beveled as at 35 and 36, respectively, so that as either of said parts moves the respective beveled portion engages the side of the locking finger and pushes the same so as to further rotate the shaft 25 in the direction in which it was rotated by the coin, whereupon the coin falls by gravity from the shoulder 34 into a coin box 37. The locking finger 24 is, of course, held in this position until the open door is closed.

Means is provided common to all of the doors 2 for automatically closing them, said means beingshown as including a. pair of parallel bars 38 one for each series of doors and each havin a plurality of lugs 39 one overlying a pin 40 projecting from the inner end flange of each of the doors 2 in the respective series. These bars are rigidly connected together by any suitable means as a tie plate 41, and are mounted upon parallel links 42 to move vertically. Obviously, as any of the doors 2 is opened the pull thereon will cause the bars 38 to move upwardly, and the bars are influenced downwardly to return the door to closed position by a tension spring 44.

It is of course desirable to provide means for temporarily holding the door in open position to prevent it from being closed before the customer can remove the desired article from the compartment, and for this purpose I may provide a segmental ratchet 45 movable coaxially with the pivot of the upper parallel link 42 and engaged by a tooth 46 on a lever 47 pivoted at 48 at the upper end of the casing. lVhen a door is opened the ratchet 45 is swung upwardly over the tooth 46, and engagement of the tooth 46 with one of the teeth of the ratchet prevents the door from being closed by the spring 44. It is necessary, however, to permit the door to return to closed position, since until an open door is closed another one cannot be opened. Accordingly, I may form the lever with an angularly projecting end 49 which extends through a slot 50 in the coin chute 29 so that the deposit of a coin in the slot will push the lever 47 and disengage the tooth 46 from the ratchet 45. To prevent the coin from being jammed in the chute by the end 49 of the lever 47, the upper portion of the ratchet 45 is formed with a cam surface 51 to engage the tooth 46 and push the lever 47 outwardly to remove the end 49 from the coin chute as the door closes.

The action of closing the doors under the influence of the spring 44 will usually cause the lock bar to rotate backwardly and the tumbl rs to return to their normal locking positions but preferably means is provided for forcibly rotating the lock bar into look ing position as the door is closed. This means may include a. small laterally projecting lug comprise a lateral arm 250 on the shaft 25 with which cooperates a spring 54 so that the spring when bearing upon the arm 250 tends to rotate the shaft 25 and force the locking finger 24 into releasing position. This spring 54 is normally held out of engagement with the arm 250 by the bolt 55 of a lock 56 which is provided for a door 57 by which access to the coin box 37 is obtained. When the bolt 55 is in looking position it pushes upwardly on the spring 54 to cause disengagement thereof from the arm 250, but when the bolt '55 is withdrawn so as to permit removal of the door 57, the spring 54 is released for actuating the arm 250.

Preferably the apparatus is arranged for use with two coin boxes, and the coin boxes are so constructed that access to the same cannot be had except at the office of the company controlling the machine. The collector of the coin boxes would remove the filled one and substitute an empty one, and the filled one would be transported to the oiiice to be opened. To prevent removal of the coins through the slot, I may utilize a construction shown in Figures 10 and 11, wherein the inlet chute 58 is inclined to the vertical and a pendulous shutter 59 is pivotally mounted as at 60 within the coin box and formed with a slot 61 which will register with the slot 58 when the coin box is upright. Gbviously, with this construction it would be impossible to shake a coin from the slot 58 with the coin box in any position, since the pendulous shutter 59 would swing about its pivot 60 so that the slot 61 would be out of register with the slot 58.

In vending apparatus of this character it is also desirable to provide means for preventing operation of the apparatus by slugs or improper coins or checks. For disposing of undersized coins or checks, the flanges 31 on the lower side of an inclined portion of the chute may be cut away as at 62 so as to cause any check or coin of a diameter less than that of the proper check or coin to fall by gravity from the chute before it reaches the returned end 26 of the shaft 25. To remove slugs of magnetic material of the proper size, a magnet 63 may be arranged adjacent another cut away portion 64 in the chute to withdraw the magnetic slug. The slugs so removed from the chute are deposited through a slot 65 in the front of the easing into a cup 66 from which they may be removed by the depositor.

While I have shown and described the apparatus as a coin or check controlled mechanism, it will be obvious that the locking mechanism may be otherwise operated than by a check or coin without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. Furthermore, the details of construction may be widely modified or changed by those skilled in the art within the scope of the appended claims when construed in the light of the prior art.

Having thus described the invention, what I claim is:

1. Vending apparatus comprising a plurality of compartments, a closure for each of said compartments, a lock bar for each closure, a plurality of tumblers for holding all of said lock bars against movement while said tumblers are held immovable, said tumblers havin a limited range of movement to permit movement of one of said lock bars for opening the respective closure and being movable by any of said lock bars, each of said closures being formed to actuate its own lock bar into unlocking position, a releasable locking dog for normally holding all of said tumblers against movement, and means for releasing said locking dog to permit movement of said tumblers-through said limited range.

2. Vending apparatus comprising a plurality of compartments, a closure for each of said compartments, a rotatable lock bar for each closure to release the respective closure upon rotation of said bar, a plurality of tumblers for holding all of said lock bars against rotation while said tumblers are held immovable, said tumblers having a limited range of movement to permit rotation of one of said lock bars for opening the respective closure and being movable by any of said lock bars, each of said closures being formed to rotate its own lock bar, a releasable locking dog for normally holding all of said tumblers against movement, and means for releasing said locle ing dog to permit movement of said tumblers through said limited range.

3. Vending apparatus comprising a plurality of compartments, a closure for each of said compartments, a rotatable lock bar for each closure having a portion in abutting relation to a port-ion of the respective closure so as to normally hold the closure locked and release the closure upon rotation of the bar by a pull upon the closure, a plurality of tumblers for holding all of said lock bars against rotation While said tumblers are held immovable, said tumblers having a limited range of movement to permit rotation of one of said lock bars for opening the respective closure, a releasable locking dog for normally holding all of said tumblers against movement, and meansfor releasing said locking dog to pea mit movement of said tumblers through said limited range.

4. Vending apparatus comprising a plurality of compartments, a closure for each of said compartments, a. lock bar for each closure, a plurality of tumblers for holding all of said locl-r bars against movement while said tumblers are held immovable, said tumblers having a limited range of movement to permit movement of one of said lock bars and being movable by any of said lock bars, means for moving each of said lock bars to open the respective closure, and releasable means for holding all of said tumblers against movement.

5. Vending apparatus comprising a plurality of compartments, a closure for each of said compartments, a rotatable lock bar for each closure having a portion in abutting relation to a portion of the respective closure so as to normally hold the closure locked and release the closure upon rotation of the bar by a pull upon the closure, a plurality of tumblers movable independently and together, said lock bars and said tumblers being associated so that rotation of all of said lock bars is prevented while said tumblers are held int-- movable and said tumblers have a limited range of movement to permit rotation of one lock bar at a time to open a closure and said tumblers being movable by rotation ofsaid lock bar, and releasable means for holding said tumblers against movement.

6. Vending apparatus comprising a plurality of compartments, a closure for each of said compartments, a rotatable lock bar for each closure having a portion parallel to an axial plane of the bar in abutting relation to a portion of the respective closure so as to normally hold the closure locked and release the closure upon rotation of the bar by a pull upon the closure, said lock bars each having another portion with opposed parallel surfaces at right angles to the plane of first mentioned portion, said lock bars and said tumblers being associated so that certain of said tumblers normally bear upon one of the lastmentioned surfaces of one of said lock bars so that rotation of all of said lock bars is prevented while said tumblers are held immovable, said tumblers having a limited range of movement to permit one of said lock bars to rotate to open a closure and being movable by cam action of the last-mentioned surface of said lock bar, and releasable means for holding said tumblers against movement with said closures locked and to release said tum-- blers for said limited range of movement.

'7. Vending apparatus comprising a plurality of compartments, a closure for each of said compartments, a plurality of tumblers having a limited range of movement independently and together for locking all of said closures when said tumblers are held immovable, means actuated by each of said closures to enter between two adjacent tumblers and cause movement of certain of said tumblers through said limited range as the closure is opened so that only one closure can be opened at a time, and releasable means for normally holding said tumblers against movement.

8. Vending apparatus comprising a plurality of compartments, a closure for each of said compartments, a plurality of tumblers having a limited range of movement independently and together for locking all of said closures when said tumblers are held im movable, means actuated by each of said closures to enter between two adjacent tumblers and cause movement of certain of said tumblers through said limited range as the closure is opened so that only one closure can be opened at a time, a releasable locking dog for normally holding said tumblers against move- 316m), and means for releasing said locking 9. Vending apparatus comprising a plurality of compartments, a closure for each of said compartments, a plurality of tumblers having a limited range of movement independently and together for locking all of said closures when said tumblers are held immovable, means actuated by each of said closures to enter between two adjacent tumblers and cause movement of certain of said tumblers through said limited range as the closure is opened so that only one closure can be opened at a time, a locking dog including a stationary part and a part movable by and with said tumblers upon movement thereof, and means removably interposed between said parts for releasably holding said movable part and said tumblers against movement.

10. Vending apparatus comprising a plurality of compartments, a closure for each of said compartments, a plurality of tumblers having a limited range of movement independently and together for locking all of said closures when said tumblers are held immovable, means actuated by each of said closures to enter between two adjacent tumblers and cause movement of certain of said tumblers through said limited range as the closure is opened so that only one closure can be opened at a time, a locking dog including a stationary part and a part movable by and with said tumblers upon movement thereof, and means removably interposed between said parts for releasably holding said movable part and said tumblers against movement, and check controlled mechanism for moving the lastmentioned means from between said parts when a check is deposited.

11. Vending apparatus comprising a plurality of compartments, a closure for each of said compartments, a plurality of tumblers having a limited range of movement independently and together for locking all of said closures when said tumblers are held immovable, means actuated by each of said closures to enter between two adjacent tumblers and cause movement of certain of said tumblers throughsaid limited range as the closure is opened so that only one closure can be opened at a time, a locking dog including a stationary part and a part movable by and with said tumblers upon movement thereof, and means removably interposed between said parts for releasably holding said movable part and said tumblers against movement, spring means'for moving the last-mentioned means between said parts, and check controlled mechanism for moving the last-mentioned means from between said-parts when a check is deposited.

12. Apparatus of the character described comprising a plurality of series of compartments, a closure for each compartment, a plurality'of tumblers for each series of closures for looking. all ot the respective series of said closures while said tumblers are held against movement, the plurality. of series of said tumblers having aggregately a limited range of movementto permit said closures to open one at a time, and releasable means common to all of said'series of tumblers for normally holding all'ofv said tumblers against movement and when released permitting movement of one of said series of tumblers through said limited range so as to enable said closures to be opened selectively one each time said tumblers are released.

13. Apparatus of the character described comprising a plurality of series of compartments, a closure for each compartment, a plurality of tumblers for each series of closures for locking all of the respective series of said closureswhile said tumblers are held against movement, a locking dogcomprising a plurality of parts each having a limited movement and each of which is associated with one of said series of tumblers to move therewith so as to hold said tumblers against movement when the respective part is held immovable and permit movement of said tumblers with saidpart when it is released, and releasable means common to all of said parts of said locking dog for normally holding all of them against movement and when released simultaneously freeing all of said parts for movement, whereby said closures may be opened selectively one each time said parts of the locking dog are released.

14. The apparatus set forth in'claim 13 with the addition of check-controlled mechanism for releasing the last-mentioned means upon deposit of a check.

15. The apparatusset forth in claim 12 with the a ddition ofmeans for actuating the last-mentioned means into position for locking said tumblers against movement, and check controlled means for actuating said last-mentioned means to release said tumblers upon deposit of a check.

16(The apparatus set forth in claim '1 with the addition of means common to all of said closures for automatically returning them to closed position.

17. The apparatus set forth in claim 8 with the addition of means common to all of said closures for automatically returning them to closed position.

18. The apparatus set forth in claim 1 with the addition of means common to all of said closures for automatically returning them to closed position, and wherein the last-mentioned means is actuated by deposit of a check to release said locking dog, means for temporarily holding said closures open, and means actuated by the deposit of a check for releasing the closure holding means to permit the closure to be automatically closed.

19. The apparatus set forth in claim 7 with the addition of means common to all of said closures for automatically returning them to closed position.

20. The apparatus set forth in claim 7 with the addition of means common to all of said closures for automatically returning them to closed position, and wherein the last-mentioned means is actuated by deposit of a check to release said tumblers, means for temporarily holding said closures open, and means actuated by the deposit of a check for releasing the closure holding means to permit the closure to be automatically closed.

21. Apparatus of the character described comprising a plurality of independently opening and closing closures, means for opening said closures, means cooperating with all of said closures so as to be moved by and with any of said closures and simultaneously independently of the other closures in the direction of opening, and means for moving the last-mentioned means in the other direction to actuate said closures into closed position.

22. Apparatus of the character described comprising a plurality of closures, check-controlled means for locking said closures, means common to all of said closures for returning them to closed position, means for temporas rily holding said closures in open position, and means actuated by deposit of a check for releasing the last-mentioned means to permit the closure to automatically return to closed position.

23. Vending apparatus comprising a casing divided intoa plurality of compartments, a closure for each of said compartments, a lock bar for each closure mounted in said casing and having a portion in abutting relation to a portion of the respective closure so as to normally hold the closure locked and release the closure upon rotation of the bar by a pull upon the closure, each of said closures being mounted to swing upon the lock bar of the next adjacent closure as a hinge pintle and movable independently of the movements of said lock bar, and lock mechanism for controlling movement of saidlock bars.

24. The apparatus set forth in claim 6 With the addition of means operable upon closing of the door to return the corresponding lock bar and the tumblers to locking position.

25 Apparatus of the character described comprising a plurality of closures, check-controlled means for locking said closures, means for returning said closures to closed position, means for temporarily holding said closures in open position, and means actuated by deposit of a check for releasing the last-mentioned means to permit the closure to automatically return to closed position.

JOSEPH H. CLARK. 

